An isolation and purification procedure is described for AAL-toxin, a secondary metabolite produced by Alternaria alternata. The method involves growth of the fungus on rice media, extraction with chloroform followed by methanol: water from fungus-infested rice, and purification of the aqueous layer that contains AAL-toxin by using chromatography methods. The AAL-toxin was of type A, and white ...

Some common decay organisms of vegetables and ripened fruits are Alternaria species. Even fruits and vegetables kept under refrigeration can be spoiled by Alternaria species because the mold grows at low temperatures. Alternaria alternata is commonly found in grain in areas with a high incidence of esophageal cancer. Three metabolites, altertoxins I, II, and III, have been isolated from A. alte...

Alternaria leaf blight is a much greater threat to muskmelons than watermelons. The disease is caused by a fungus (Alternaria cucumerina) that can rapidly defoliate plants, causing reductions in bulk yield. Melons on defoliated vines ripen prematurely and result in lower quality fruit compared to melons produced on healthy vines. Yield losses greater than 50% will occur in situations where the ...

Alternaria spp. produce a wide variety of toxic metabolites with different chemical structures. Tomato products have been considered a likely source of Alternaria toxins in the human diet because Alternaria is an important spoilage mold of tomatoes. A new method for the determination of these mycotoxins in tomato paste, involving solid phase cartridges for extraction before HPLC fluorescence de...

The fungi isolated from 100 samples of flue-cured tobacco from 12 markets in 2 tobacco belts comprised 11 genera, including 10 species of Aspergillus. The mean percentage per sample isolated from 62 samples of tobacco from Middle Belt markets was Alternaria, 40.6%; Aspergillus niger, 47.8%; Aspergillus repens, 38.0%; and Penicillium, 25.8%. The mean percentage per sample isolated from 38 sample...

BACKGROUND Allergy to airborne fungi can cause rhinitis and severe asthma, hence the exposure to spores inside home is an important factor of sensitization. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution and prevalence of species of Alternaria, Aspergillus, Cladosporium and Penicillium inside and outside of homes of patients allergic to fungi and to evaluate seasonal variations. METH...

The present study was designed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of leaf of Pithecellobium dulce against twenty pathogenic microorganisms. Leaf extracts of P. dulce were prepared in distilled water and organic solvents, viz., benzene, chloroform, acetone and methanol in increasing and decreasing order of solvent polarity. Agar well diffusion technique was used to assess the antimicrobial a...

The aeropalynological monitoring was carried out from 1 February 2005-31 January 2007. The total number of spores collected during the main spore season (MSS) in 2005 was 4,500 for Alternaria and 93,744 in the case of Cladosporium, whereas in 2006 values were increased (8,385 for Alternaria and 150,144 for Cladosporium), reaching the maximum concentrations on 18 July and 17 June 2006 with 344 a...

Alternaria is an important fungus to study due to their different life style from saprophytes to endophytes and a very successful fungal pathogen that causes diseases to a number of economically important crops. Alternaria species have been well-characterized for the production of different host-specific toxins (HSTs) and non-host specific toxins (nHSTs) which depend upon their physiological an...